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About

American composer best known for his soundtrack to 1951's "A Streetcar Named Desire," one of cinema's first jazz-based scores. He also wrote "Unchained Melody," which continued to keep his name alive throughout the generations.

Before Fame

He was known for incorporating a streak of modernism into the traditional film-music leitmotif structure.

Trivia

He was nominated for 15 Academy Awards, but never won. Still, his film scores accounted for many of Hollywood's most legendary films, including "Spartacus" from 1960, "Cleopatra" from 1963, "Who's Afraid of Virginia Woolf?" from 1966, and "2001: A Space Odyssey" from 1968.

Family Life

He fathered three children across two marriages. His second wife was Annemarie Hoellger.

Associated With

He composed the jazz score for the 1959 TV series "Nero Wolfe," starring William Shatner as Archie Goodwin and Kurt Kasznar as Nero Wolfe. The show never aired.